A Reversal Of Roles
by Morrisburger
Summary: Lily ends up in debt to James Potter. Snogging ensues.


I own nothing from the Harry Potter Universe 

Lily gasped for air as she hurtled herself down the many corridors of her magical school. Pumping her little legs as fast as they would carry her, she once again mentally cursed her roommates. Mates? HA! What kind of bloody mates would forget to wake up their supposed 'friend' in time for her obscenely early Herbology class? Flying past the portraits at what must have been record speed, Lily grumbled under her already winded breath. Bloody, no good, roommates…

Upon finally reaching the entrance to the greenhouse, Lily didn't even bother straightening her crooked tie, her flyaway hair, or her poorly buttoned shirt; rather, she careened through the door and launched herself into the first available seat, badly out of breath and quietly cursing up a storm. She could barely suppress a giggle as her classmates collectively turned around and gaped at her unusual behavior. Usually, she arrived at least ten minutes before the bell and sat at the very front of class, her shirt perfectly ironed and her robes pleated to perfection. Her suppressed giggles soon evaporated into a distant memory as she heard a chuckle beside her. O sweet Merlin, she knew that chuckle. Her eyes darted to her side, where they came face to face (or perhaps, eyes to face) with James Potter.

"Shite." Lily grumbled, slumping her body against the hard wood of her desk chair.

"Evans!" The boy exclaimed, the corners of his mouth turning upwards in an alluring smile. "How nice of you to join us!" His eyes roamed over her panting chest in obvious appreciation.

Before Lily could respond with her usual haughty dig, her attention was directed towards the front of the class. "—and now that _everyone _has deigned to join our humble greenhouse of learning, will you please continue passing your essays to the front."

Lily heard the usual grumbling and rustling of papers, and reached into her satchel. Opening her textbook (where she always stashed her essays to keep them in good condition), she let out a small gasp.

It wasn't there.

WHY WASN"T IT THERE?

Lily frantically searched her memory, yet came up blank. She had written it days ago, and proofread it each night! She had had it last night when she had packed up her belongings when the library had closed! It could be anywhere between there and her dorm. This was it! She could kiss goodbye to being Head Girl next year! Kiss goodbye to her promising career as a Healer or Ministry official! She would be an abject failure, and live in a box, and eat all sorts of garbage scraps laced with salmonella and hepatitis! And then—

Lily's mental screams were cut short as she felt a gentle nudge on her side. Slowly, her horrified gaze connected with a pair of dazzling amber eyes. _Concerned _amber eyes. James Potter.

"Lily, are you okay? You're… hyperventilating…" James asked, his tone laced with alarm.

It was a testament to Lily's horror that she didn't bother rebuking Potter for using her first name. "My essay… it's… not here." Lily whispered.

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James' eyebrows shot up in surprise. It wasn't like Lily to forget or lose her essay. He shot a quick glance to the front and noticed Sprout was almost done collecting the essays. Without a second thought, he quickly vanished his name from his title page and cast a quick transfiguration spell to alter his commanding scrawl to emulate Lily's dainty cursive writing. Quickly, he placed his essay on Lily's desk and schooled his face into an expression of practiced innocence. He saw Lily's eyes widen in surprise as her pseudo-essay was collected.

"Wait! That's not—"

James cut off her protests with a quick wave of his wand and a whispered incantation.

He smiled at her trying to reassure her with a wink and a shrug of his strong shoulders. He couldn't help himself; he hated to see her in pain. Besides, what was another detention in the sea of his misdemeanors? Slowly, he released his spell on her, shooting her a look that advised against any other outburst.

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Lily gaped as she felt her body relax from Potter's hold. His selfless deed resonated in her head. What was he playing at! He was an arrogant berk! He wasn't supposed to be kind, he wasn't supposed to sweet!

O sweet Circe, dieing from salmonella poisoning in a cardboard box somewhere was one thing, being in debt to James Potter was quite another! Frankly, Lily wasn't sure which punishment was more horrid.

Time seemed to crawl as Lily shifted uncomfortably in her seat. What would she say to him when class ended? Would he want something in return? WHY WASN'T HE LOOKING AT HER??? It was true, since James had cast her that cute wink (not cute! Arrogant! Yes, arrogant wink), he had completely ignored her! The insolence! (Never mind that she had vehemently demanded this very feat from him countless times in the past…) That's it; she was going to corner him when the bell rang. Yeah, she would corner him and demand answers…

But fate had other ideas. As soon as the teacher announced class was ended, Lily ran a quick hand through her hair, attempting to sort out the heavy mass of crimson knots, waves, and ringlets. Pasting a look of bored disdain on her delicate features, Lily regally turned around to address the perpetual thorn in her side.

But he was gone.

Gaping at his retreating back, Lily frowned at his impertinence. The nerve of him!!!

Gathering her books together, Lily marched herself forward, catching up with Potter. He and his friend Remus were good-naturedly bickering over something inconsequential when she finally caught up with them. Clearing her throat noisily, Lily caught their attention.

The two boys turned towards her, their eyebrows cocked identically upwards.

Shite. She hadn't thought this far ahead.

"Potter." She said, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

"Er… Yeah?" He answered, laughing at the cute look of embarrassment on Lily's face.

"Um, I, er, I have to talk to you. Now. Uh, please." Lily said.

"Riiiiiiight," Remus drawled, shooting James a smirk, "I'll just mosey on down yonder, and leave you two crazy kids to your antics, ciao." And with that, James' lycanthropic friend wandered off, shooting a look of amused curiosity over his shoulder.

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James smiled at his retreating friend and schooled his features into a confused stare. "What's up, Evans?"

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Lily blinked. What's up? _What's UP!!!_ He bloody well knew what was up, thank you very much. Lily huffed in annoyance, and noticed that several students were lingering and listening to their conversation. Glaring at them, Lily quickly took hold of James' hand and pulled him through a door and down a deserted corridor.

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James smiled goofily as her small hand wrapped around his and pulled him off to a secluded corner. Was he asleep? 'Cause this was how many a pleasant dream had started for him…

"What are you playing at?" Lily demanded angrily.

Okay, not a dream. Dream-Lily tended to yell less than Real-Lily, and she usually wore scanty lacy underwear and little else. Definitely not Dream-Lily.

"Pardon?" James asked, staring at her flushed face and going all tingly.

"Don't you 'pardon' me Mister! What was that giving-me-your-essay-and-saving-my-arse thing all about?"

"Well, your arse happens to be one of my favorite parts of y—"

"Don't go there, Potter!" Lily said, unable to contain her frisson of pleasure at his insinuation.

"Seriously, Evans, don't even worry about it, it's already forgotten."

"Already forgotten?" Lily shrieked, "Not bloody likely! What is it you want? Want me to do your Potions essay? Your laundry? A snog?"

James' eyes widened at her suggestions. Did she really think he would use her like that? God dammit, what did he have to do to prove to her he wasn't a selfish jerk?

"Look, Evans, I would never _blackmail _you into snogging me! I'm not a perverted creeper!"

"Uhhuh, 'cause your SO bloody mature! Just look at your past actions, I mean, dyeing the Slytherins crimson and gold, that was so mature!"

James smiled fondly at the memory, but soon remembered that the-love-of-his-life was accusing him of blackmail. Focus, Potter.

"Honestly, Evans, just forget about it. Besides, if you keep harping on about this snogging thing, I'll be convinced that you're in love with me…"

Lily's eyes widened at his audacity. "Well! That's just, that's just… preposterous! You… preposterous… jerk!" She could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks and prayed her vehement denial sounded slightly less lame out loud than it did in her ears.

James' eyebrow arched yet again at her stammered denial. "Don't worry about it Evans," He said, his eyes glinting with mischief, "I doubt the snog would even be worth the effort of blackmailing you…"

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Lily gasped as the insinuation of her inferior snogging abilities washed over her. THE AUDACITY! Before she could stop herself, she reached up and threaded her fingers in his hair, pulling him down for a scorching hot kiss.

Her intent to prove his intimation soon became lost in a sea of roaming hands and dancing tongues. Years of passionate anger and teenage lust crackled around the entwined teenagers.

Lily felt James' astonishment melt away as he voraciously attacked her mouth with his. Lily couldn't help but moan as his lips slid downwards and attacked the delicate skin of her neck.

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James could barely contain his desire as he felt Lily's pulse race beneath the pressure of his tongue. How had this happened? One second, she was yelling at him, the next she was giving him the best kiss of his life!

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Lily's mind raced as she felt James' strong hands trace the curve of her lower back. O Merlin, this was James Potter! Her enemy! The very same boy who had teased her relentlessly for the past six years was now caressing the sensitive skin just above the waist of her skirt. She should stop this, she should stop this right now.

"I hate you!" She gasped as his tongue hit a deliciously sensitive match of skin. She felt him smile against her neck.

"You're a prissy, know-it-all teacher's pet." He murmured lovingly against her skin.

"You're a supercilious, spoiled little horror!" She moaned back, pulling his mouth back to her for a passionate kiss.

"Bossy, vexing, overbearing prude…" James gasped, momentarily breaking away from her soft lips. Sliding his hands down her slim form, James reveled in the beauty of her shape. Soft curves and valleys danced underneath his fingertips. James reveled in Lily's soft moans of approval.

Feeling her shiver in appreciation, a thought occurred to James and he suddenly slammed his eyes shut, desperately attempting to reseize control over his frantic lust. He loved Lily, but more importantly, he respected Lily, and he knew that if they continued in this vein they would both do something they would later regret.

Shuddering slightly, James pulled back from her heated embrace. Running his eyes over her mussed hair, her shining eyes, and her flushed skin, he swallowed convulsively and forced his hands to his sides.

"I-I'm sorry, Lily." He faltered, silently pleading with her not to be angry. Rather than the expected fury he had believed to see in her eyes, the glowing emerald orbs held a different sentiment, they were almost… happy.

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Lily could not rip her eyes away from James' face. That kiss, _that_ was what living was all about. That kiss had blown all her past prejudices out of the water. Relishing in the feeling of building arousal, Lily threw her insecurities, her doubts, and her timidities out the window. Slowly replacing her hands on James' shoulders, she unhurriedly bent forward and placed a sweet kiss on his lips.

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This kiss lacked the other's unbridled passion, yet it caused James' hart to race just the same, in reality, even more. This kiss evoked feelings of love, adoration, and warmth that James had never felt before. Moving his lips slowly over hers, James basked in the sweet, wet warmth of her mouth.

Just as James felt an acute sense of euphoria wash over him, the beautiful girl in his arms pulled back slightly, breaking the wonderful contact of their lips.

James stared into her eyes as she looked up at him, her small fingers gently brushing the fine hairs on the back of his neck.

He felt unfamiliar pangs of alarm as she stared up at him. What if she regretted this? What if she withdrew the breathtaking feeling of warmth he had just experienced with her? What if she revoked her silent admission of affection? These thoughts left him with a feeling of severe desperation.

Smiling beautifully at the unwarranted display of desperation on James' features, Lily gradually pulled herself closer to his ear and whispered, "I have a question, James…"

Shivering at the sound of his given name on her stunning lips, he couldn't help but whisper back, "What is it?"

Taking her time, Lily ran her tongue over her lips. "Will you go out with me?"

James' eyes widened and he felt a joy wash over him such as he had never felt before. Rather than answer the question, he ecstatically pulled her forward for another mind-blowing kiss.

It was a day that would forever decide the fate of the Wizarding World.

It was a day they would never forget.


End file.
